


Rodrick x Reader

by strawberryshortcakewithcream



Category: Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series - Jeff Kinney
Genre: Crush, Dating, F/M, High School, Love, Romance, Self-Insert, Teenagers, teenage, teenage romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-14
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:20:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28072353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strawberryshortcakewithcream/pseuds/strawberryshortcakewithcream
Summary: You're all alone when you move to a brand new town for your dad's job, until you meet the rebellious misfit at school. Something tells you there's more to him than meets the eye.
Relationships: Rodrick Heffley/Reader
Comments: 15
Kudos: 46





	1. Chapter 1 - New Beginnings

It's been a disaster. It's almost the end of your first day at your new school and you've barely talked to anyone. Obviously you didn't expect to be the most popular kid in school right away, but you feel so unwelcome in this strange new state. Above all, you miss all of the friends you were forced to leave behind for your dad's stupid new job. As you walk through the corridors to your next and final class, the weight of your isolation hits you. If you were back at your old school right now, you'd be smiling at your friends and saying hi as you passed by them.

When you reach the classroom you slump down into the only empty desk and let out a small exasperated sigh. Your education is the last thing on your mind right now. Out of the corner of your eye you notice the boy sitting in the desk next to you. He had a look that any other boy would be downright scared to rock. A spiky black bedhead with black eye liner to match. In fact, almost everything he wore was black. He had that kind of 'hasn't-slept-for-5-days' look, but in a hot way. You feel your pulse raise a little and force your gaze back to the front of the class in case he notices you staring. As the teacher reads the register you find yourself listening for which name this mysterious boy would answer to. As it turns out, you didn't need to pay too much attention because the teacher has to repeat his name several times before he drowsily responds. After this you can feel his gaze turn towards you, not bothering to disguise it like you had. You try to pretend you don't notice, but it's almost impossible, and you can feel yourself tensing up and starting to flush pink.

As the lesson begins you try even harder to focus on the teacher and the task at hand. Just when you think you have finally blocked him out, you feel someone poking your left arm. You turn towards the source, mildly outraged, to see Rodrick looking back at you. The split second of direct eye contact sends a small shiver down your spine.

"Can I borrow a pen?" You struggle to suppress an eyeroll. For some reason you thought he'd have something more important to say than that. What's more is that he is clearly holding a pen already after just having used it to poke you. He sees you looking at it and tries to hide it in the palm of his hand.

"Uh, it's out of ink." You nod, not believing him for a second, and hand him a black pen from your pencil case. As he takes the pen your hands touch for a moment, and it's as if he'd just given you an electric shock. 

"Thanks." He grins at you boyishly, lingering on you for a second before turning back to his 'work'. Glancing down at his paper, you can see the words 'löded diper' scribbled in the margin. What does that even mean?

After class, you're about to leave to go home, when you hear someone call after you.

"Hey, new girl!" You turn around to see Rodrick standing by the doorway. He's tall and slim, but sturdy. Exactly your type. You concentrate all your energy into remaining cool and collected.

"Hey, Rodrick?", you ask casually, as if the name hadn't been seared into your brain. 

"Do you want a ride in my van? I could take you home." You heart flutters. You've only just met this guy, but something tells you to go for it, especially considering the other option is the school bus.

"Sure." He grins at you again in that playful and lopsided way, and he shows you to his van in the school parking lot. The words 'löded diper' are written on the side in black paint. You have to know what it's all about.

"Hey Rodrick, can I ask you something?" You're sure you see his pale face redden, just a little.

"Uh, yeah, anything." 

"What does 'löded diper' mean?" He visibly relaxes. 

"It's the name of my band, I play drums. Pretty cool, right?" You can't help but smile. Beneath his arrogance it was so obvious how eager to please he was. He was like an adorable emo puppy.

The engine of the van splutters into life and you begin chatting. It turns out he lives in the same neighbourhood as you with his parents and two younger brothers. An idea pops into your head.

"Hey, we're having a housewarming party this weekend, why don't you come over?"

"Sure, why not? I mean, I guess I'll have to check, but I'm pretty sure I'm not doing anything." You feel as if a fire has been lit in your stomach. Rodrick agreeing to come has already made the prospect of the party 100x better. The conversation continues and you talk about school and moving house and your favourite music. All too soon the van pulls up to your house and you both get out. Rodrick walks towards you and before you know it you are centimeters apart. You're so close that you can practically hear his heart beat in his chest, and feel his hot breath on your skin. The hairs on the back of your neck prick up.

"One last thing before you go..." You gulp, your heart in your mouth. A part of you wants to resist, but a larger part knows this is what you've wanted ever since you laid eyes on him.

"Here." He presses your biro into your hand. A wave of embarrassment crashes over you and you wonder why, after knowing this guy for all of 90 minutes, you thought he was going to pull you close and kiss you like you'd never kissed anyone before. 

"Later, new girl!" He gets back into his van and drives off, leaving you dumbfounded. Surely he knew what he was doing. Was he making fun of you? You take a few deep breaths before you enter the house in an attempt to bring your pulse back down to a normal level. Even though nothing happened, you still don't want your parents to know that you let a stranger drive you home on your first day.

Satisfied that you don't look too much different from usual, you unlock the front door and walk in.


	2. Cute

"I'm home!" Your voice echoes through the sparsely furnished home.

"Hi hun!" Your mom's voice calls back from the living room. "How was your first day at school?"

"Oh, it was alright," you reply carefully, wondering how much you should let on. You poke your head around the door to see your mom working hard at her laptop. "I made a new friend. "

"That's great honey! What's her name?" 

"His name is Rodrick," you say as casually as possible. Your mom had the habit of blowing every friendship you had with a guy way out of proportion."He lives kind of nearby actually." 

"That's nice, dear." She's clearly too busy to fully process this information. You decide to venture a bit further while she isn't paying that much attention.

"I invited him to the housewarming party this weekend. " You can see the cogs in her brain beginning to turn at the mention of the words 'housewarming party', and she switches her gaze over to you, making direct eye contact. Damn. 

"Why don't you ask her to bring the whole family? The more the merrier!" Your face falls. This was not the plan. Your chance to spend some quality alone time with Rodrick was ruined. Despite your disappointment, you couldn't think of any reason not to invite the Heffleys that wouldn't result in some embarrassing 'girl talk' with your mother, so you have no choice but to agree.

The next morning you wake up feeling utterly drained. Getting up at 6am for school was still relatively new for you after being allowed a few weeks off while you were moving. It also didn't help that you were up late texting your old friends about everything that had happened recently. Surprisingly though, you're looking forward to the new day. You take extra care with your skin care routine and while choosing what to wear, and looking in the mirror you think it's pretty hard to tell you got less than 6 hours of sleep. Admittedly, you had a certain someone in mind while getting ready and you find you've incorporated a little more black into your look than usual.

Entering the kitchen, you find your mom and dad drinking coffee together at the table. After making some toast, you decide to take a chance and ask your mom for a ride to school. You knew Dad needed the car to get to work, but riding the school bus was not an experience you wanted to repeat.

"No, honey. You know if I do, your dad will be late. Why can't you just take the school bus?" 

"Your mother's right. Speaking of, I'd better get going. Bye, girls!" Your dad rises from the table, loading his empty cup into the dishwasher and walking towards the door. You sigh. It was worth a try.

"Bye, Dad." Where was Rodrick and his van when you needed him? 

Dejected, you head back upstairs to pack your bag for school. You leave the house not long after your dad, and walk towards the bus stop at the end of your street. It felt weird being one of about fifteen juniors that took the school bus. At least you could use your music to drown out most of the noise, and that one overconfident sophomore that keeps hitting on you.

Arriving at school, you think you can see a familiar figure getting out of his van. Your suspicions are confirmed when you get off the bus and see him striding towards you with that cheesy grin of his. God, he was so adorable. Today he was wearing a black button up shirt, unbuttoned a little too far down for modesty. 

"Hey."

"Hey." You smile back. The tension was unbearable. The seconds you wait for his response feel like hours.

"Don't you have a car?" he asks eventually with a mocking smile. You explain that your dad needs it to get to work in the mornings.

"You know, I could give you a ride now and then, since we live so close together." When he says this, he's barely able to make eye contact and starts looking around as if he could see something really interesting in one of the parking lot trees. You couldn't believe your luck.

"That would be great!" He immediately perks up, going a little pink in the cheeks.

"Cool, cool! Can I get your number then?" Now it was your turn to blush. Even though it was just so you could contact him for a ride, you felt a thrill knowing you could text or call him anytime you wanted. You swap details and add each other to your contacts, and you couldn't help wondering what name he put your number under. Did he have some cute nickname for you, or was he the type of guy to just use a person's full name? You decided to keep it simple, just typing in 'Rodrick', partly in case he caught a glimpse of your phone screen. 

Despite your feeling of dreamy light-headedness, you manage to remember about asking the rest of Rodrick's family to the party, but you're aware that you're running out of time before first period starts.

"Where's your locker?" you ask, so that you can walk and talk together.

"I'll show you. Come with me." He places his hand on the small of your back and gently pushes you forward. How could you describe the way it feels? It's as if a thousand tiny needles are stabbing you where his fingers rest. You didn't know that it was even possible to feel so sensitively and so much, every nerve ending was fizzing like a bag of pop rocks. It was as if your skin was screaming, no, singing out, and it gave your stomach that kind of falling feeling, as if you were plummeting to the earth on some big rollercoaster. By the way it felt you would think that you had never been touched by anyone before in your life. You try to stop yourself from gasping at the surprise and sensation of it all, but succeed only in reducing your gasp's conspicuousness. 

After recovering, you ask him about bringing the rest of his family. 

"Uh yeah, sure." He seems disappointed, but he continues. "I've gotta warn you though, they're kind of weird. Especially my dad."

That didn't bother you. For all you cared, Rorick's family could be a herd of elephants. All that mattered was that he came too. 

"Rodrick?" you ask before knowing what you're going to say next.

"Yeah?"

"Just so you know, it was my mom who asked me to invite the rest of your family. I only really wanted to spend time with you." Oh God. Why did you have to say that? You can't bring yourself to meet his eyes.

"Oh, is that so?" he asks with a sly smile. "For the record, I think you're pretty cute." You feel a rush of excitement travel from your stomach to your blazing cheeks. He thought I was cute! Before you have time to process this and respond, the bell rings, and you're both forced to say your goodbyes and get to class. For that moment, it felt as if you could fly. You smiled to yourself all the way to class, and you didn't care who saw.


	3. Elation

You're in such a good mood for the rest of the day that it doesn't matter how hard the work is, or how many lessons you have, it all passes by you in a blur. Even being scolded by your teachers for not paying enough attention doesn't bother you. You just keep replaying the scene over and over in your head, the way your heart fluttered as he looked into your eyes, that slight knowing smirk as he told you what he thought of you. The way it made you feel, it was as if he had professed his undying love to you or something. You almost felt ridiculous falling so head over heels for a guy you just met, especially one that was such an obvious flirt. On the other hand, any feelings of embarrassment were vastly overwhelmed by the pure bliss of knowing he thought you were more than just 'the new kid'. Before you know it, the final bell rings and you're free to go. You head for the lockers, intending to take Rodrick up on his offer of a ride home.

When you arrive, you can't see him anywhere. After looking around for a bit, you decide to text him to ask where he is. While you wait for his response, you sort your own locker out, taking out the books you need to take home with you. An unfamiliar voice calls your name. Surprised, you turn to face what is presumably the owner of the voice, a tall-ish girl with wild curly hair forced into two French braids. She wasn't pretty in the conventional sense due to her large crooked nose and sturdy jaw, but you couldn't deny that there was some otherworldly beauty to her. She had the grace of an an ancient Greek statue and the strength and tanned complection of someone who was definitely on one of the school sports teams.

"Hi, I'm Evelyn." She sounded amazingly confident. "We're in the same English class." For a moment you were confused as to why you didn't recognise her, but then you realised you had probably been too busy staring at Rodrick.

"Hi Evelyn, how's it going?" you ask, unsure of why she wants to speak to you.

"I'm good, I'm good. I was just wondering how you're getting on here. It must be hard starting a new school." Despite her self assuredness, she didn't intimidate you. In fact, she sounded as if she was genuinely interested in what you had to say.

"Well, at first it was a little tough, but I'm starting to get used to it now," you respond with a grateful smile. 

"Ok, well, if you ever need anything come and talk to me, alright?" You nod and she takes off down the hallway. Your interaction is over almost as soon as it had begun, but it was nice to have been noticed. Nobody else seemed particularly interested in welcoming you so far, excluding a certain somebody.

You decide to wait a little longer for that somebody, despite the gnawing worry that he has gone home without you. You're about to leave to check for his van in the parking lot when you see him saunter down the hallway towards you. 

"Hey!" You try in vain to disguise your excitement at seeing him. 

"Hey. Sorry I couldn't reply to your text, I was in detention." Why were you not surprised? You smiled up at him, meeting his deep brown eyes through his messy bangs. It was probably for something stupid, like throwing paper aeroplanes or doodling all over his work. 

"Hello? Earth to Little Miss Daydreamer!" He crouches down to make his eyes level to yours. You hadn't realised how long you'd been staring at him for.

"Huh? Oh, sorry." You're a little embarrassed of how obvious it is that you're into him, but you can't help it. He makes you feel things you've never felt before.

"Long day, huh? Yeah me too. Let's go home." He puts his arm around your shoulder and squeezes it before walking off in the direction of the parking lot. You stand there a few moments, a little too surprised to move, and then jog to catch him up.

Both of you get into the van and he starts the engine. There are a few agonising minutes of silence and you're worried that you'll go the whole journey without saying anything to him, but then you remember what he'd said to you by the lockers.

"So what was the detention for?"

"Oh, nothing really. Passing notes in class, isn't that stupid?" He smiles. 

"Yeah." God, why couldn't I have said anything better than that? 

"I bet I'd never see you in detention, goody two-shoes." He takes a quick playful glance at you through the corner of his eye before looking back at the road.

"I don't think you know as much about me as you think you do," you say slowly with a teasing smile.

After having broken the ice, the conversation runs smoothly and you feel like you're talking to a good friend. You talk about the teachers you like and don't like, who to avoid in the halls, which days the canteen has good food and so on, but also about more serious things. He tells you that after he graduates high school (IF he graduates) he wants to try and make it big with his band. You tell him more about the party, and about how boring and adult it was going to be. You even tell him about meeting Evelyn by the lockers.

"She's pretty uptight, don't you think?" he asks, with a slightly raised eyebrow.

"She seemed really nice to me!"

"Ok, ok," he says defeatedly. "If you like her, she's cool with me." You pause.

"Do you happen to know if she lives nearby?"

"Oh, no, she lives up on the north side of town." You breathe a secret sigh of relief. Even though you liked her and wanted her to come, the party was all about you and Rodrick getting to know each other better. At least, it was from your point of view.

Rodrick pulls up to your house and keeps the engine running. Before you get out you feel as if you should make some kind of move for him to remember you by until tomorrow, but you panic and only manage to stammer out a 'thank you'. It's disappointing but probably for the best. Again, you only just met the guy. After hopping out, you watch him as he drives away until the van becomes obscured by buildings. You feel a strange kind of longing knowing that his house is within walking distance of yours. There was nothing besides social convention stopping you from knocking on his door whenever you wanted. 

With that thought, you sigh and enter the house. After grabbing a snack from the kitchen and yelling 'I'm home!', you go straight up to your room to get your homework out of the way. The last thing you want to be worried about this weekend is having work to finish. You're just about to get started when you feel your phone buzz in your pocket. Your heart skips a beat. A name flashes up on your phone screen, but it turns out that the message was just from one of your friends in the groupchat. You're not disappointed, in fact you're almost relieved. If it was from Rodrick, there was no way you'd be able to keep your mind on your work. You tap out a quick 'haha' and get back to the task at hand.

The rest of the evening passes by much the same as normal, with you eating dinner, washing up, watching a few episodes of your favourite TV show and keeping your friends updated on the events of the day. To say you're glad that you've stayed in contact despite the move would be an understatement. Of course, you hoped that you would keep in touch, but you knew how these things usually happened. You'd exchange numbers and say, 'We should hang out sometime', and then never speak to each other again. You feel a warm glow inside you knowing that your friendship is stronger than that.

Just as you're about to go to sleep, the phone on your bedside table buzzes and lights up. You glance over to read the notification. Rodrick. Maybe you should wait a few minutes so you don't seem too eager? No, that was childish and you couldn't wait. You open the message. 

"Hey. You awake?"


	4. Band

"Hey. You awake?"

You check the time on your phone. 11:26 pm. For a moment you consider ignoring his message and going back to bed, but now that you've opened it you've got no choice but to reply. You type out a message and delete it several times before deciding on one that you think sounds ok.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Idk I was just thinking about you" Butterflies rise up in your stomach. You reread the message over and over, smiling uncontrollably. You lose yourself for a minute, eventually remembering with a jolt that he'd be expecting a reply. How am I supposed to respond to that? Ideas speed through your brain, each one seemingly more stupid than the last. You were pretty sure he was flirting with you and you wanted to reciprocate, but at the same time you wanted to play it cool. You'd also heard many cautionary tales from your friends about the kinds of guys that text girls late at night, so you didn't want to get too invested.

"What were you thinking in particular?" Your heart races in anticipation as you watch the ellipses in the word 'typing...' flash on screen. 

"Oh, nothing much. Goodnight." What the hell!? You look at the text for at least a minute in disbelief. Was this some kind of a joke? Why would he start a conversation so late at night just to end it so abruptly? You sigh, frustrated, and put your phone on 'do not disturb' before going to sleep.

The next morning you try to pretend as if nothing had happened, but that doesn't stop your ride to school being noticeably more awkward than usual. You both make half-hearted attempts at small talk before falling back into silence. Rodrick puts some music on which helps a little, but it was obvious that you both thinking about the same thing.

During English that day instead of the usual staring at Rodrick, you spend most of your time giggling and passing notes with Evelyn, who sat one seat behind and to the right. It wasn't that you were angry at Rodrick, he didn't exactly do anything wrong. You were just confused, and wanted to focus your mind on something else. Besides, you couldn't go through the rest of high school with Rodrick as your only friend, and Evelyn didn't seem like a bad person to hang out with. Even though she was direct and said what she thought, she wasn't mean and gossipy like some of the other girls you had overheard in the cafeteria, the loudest and meanest of all seeming to go by the name of Heather Hills.

During break, Evelyn encourages you to sign up for a club.

"Come on, how else are you going to meet new people? You can't just hang out with Rodrick all the time!"

"Why not?" What was it with these two? 

"Oh he's fine, don't get me wrong, I just think you need to broaden your social horizons a little."

"My horizons are perfectly broad, thank you very much!" Evelyn just laughs and leads you to the sign up sheet for some kind of music club.

"Why don't you join my band? They let you practice on the school's musical instruments after class if you want."

"I can't play any instruments," you protest, but it seems as if Evelyn is already quite set on the idea.

"That doesn't matter! You could sing, or we have an opening for a tambourine player." You roll your eyes, but she continues. "We're actually looking for a drummer at the moment. I know you said you don't play, but we just need a simple beat in the background. Just try it out, please?" 

You begrudgingly agree. 

"Oh my God, I can't wait for you to meet Beth and Olivia! They do lead vocals and bass, and I'm on rhythm and backup vocals." You weren't completely ready to meet the whole gang, but Evelyn seems so excited that you don't want to let on how reluctant you are.

"We meet every Monday after school, don't forget it!"

"Oh, I won't."

You continue talking about the band until the bell goes and you both walk your separate ways to class.

When the end of the day comes, you seriously consider taking the bus. Of course you'd rather ride in the van, but this morning had been so... uncomfortable. Something about the way Rodrick acted made you feel as if he really didn't want you to be there. Even so, you were committed to pretending you weren't phased by his weird behaviour at all, so you run out to the parking lot to meet him by his van. 

"Hey."

"Hey." You hop in.

"So how'd it go today?" Relief washes over you now that it wasn't your responsibility to start the conversation and you relax a little.

"Pretty good. How about you?"

"Oh, you know, the same as always. I missed break for scratching 'loded diper' into my desk with a compass." You smile. 'Same as always', huh?

As he drives you home, chatting as you go, you think to yourself that maybe things already are normal again. You still didn't understand fully what had happened last night, but you were pretty sure he didn't do it out of malice. Perhaps tomorrow you'd ask Evelyn what she thought about the whole thing, although she seemed pretty biased against Rodrick for whatever reason. 

When you're about five minutes away from your house, Rodrick suddenly seems to freeze up a little. A serious expression falls over his face, as if he is concentrating very hard on something. He was adorable when he was smiling, but when he was brooding there was something dangerously hot about him.

"About last night... I'm sorry for acting so weirdly." You're too surprised to say anything. "I'll explain everything to you at the party this weekend, I promise."

"Oh, ok. " What could he mean? Your mind starts racing with possibilities. At least you'd finally know what it was all about, but you weren't sure if you could wait that long. 

You arrive at your house, but before you get out Rodrick grabs you by the wrist.

"Hey, " his frown eases into a smile, "See you tomorrow." He winks and you completely melt. All you can do is smile and nod. You stumble out of the van and he speeds away, leaving you completely and utterly under his spell.


	5. Topsy Turvy

When you walk through the door, even your usually oblivious mother notices the change in your demeanor.

"What are you grinning about?" she asks, with an amused smile.

"Oh, nothing," you say deliberately secretively, and slip past her and up the stairs to your room. That night you go to bed turning over and over what he'd said in your mind - about how he'd 'explain everything' at the party. But that was a whole three days away, how were you supposed to wait that long? Eventually you force yourself to go to sleep so that the when you wake up you'd be closer to Saturday evening.

The next morning Rodrick arrives to take you to school as usual. When he sees you leaving the house and walking up to the van his face lights up into an adorable grin. Boy, what a dork! You have to admit though, his smile was pretty infectious. Today he's wearing a short sleeved black t-shirt with the words 'löded diper' written on it over a long sleeved white t-shirt. On the way to school, you talk about meaningless things like the weather and your homework, but somehow every other sentence you find some way of gently teasing or flirting with one another. You both stumble over your words a little, which you both seem to find inexplicably hilarious. When he sees you smiling he looks so happy, as if you laughing at his stupid jokes really meant something to him. Of course, by this point it was obvious that you felt something for Rodrick, but could it be possible that he thought the same way about you? Before now, it had just seemed like he was having his fun with the new girl, and he'd soon get bored and move on to someone more exciting - his flirting always sounded suspiciously rehearsed and fluent. You hadn't dreamed that he was in any way serious about you. But now, you dared to think that maybe something could come of all this, maybe he could really like you. You felt a strange sensation in your stomach thinking about all this. It was like butterflies, but instead of feeling nervous, you felt warm and excited. You try to suppress them and not get your hopes up, but it was no good. Nothing could bring you down from this high.

When you get to school you tear yourself away from him at the lockers and meet up with Evelyn. She doesn't look too happy about the time you're spending with Rodrick, but she doesn't say anything. She already knows her advice would be falling on deaf ears after you defended him yesterday. As you chat to each other by the lockers, you see Heather Hills approaching out of the corner of your eye. Heather Hills. Almost everyone called her by her full name as if she was some kind of celebrity. Maybe Hills was the name of some famous company, after all it was common knowledge that her dad was rich beyond belief, but you couldn't say you'd heard of it. As she draws closer you can see Evelyn tense up. Before now you'd thought that Evelyn wasn't afraid of anyone, but now you weren't so sure.

"What's your name again?" she demands.

"I, uh..." What was wrong with you? How could you have forgotten your own name?

"Whatever. I just want you to know that you might think you're hot shit, being new around here and all, but everybody thinks you're an awkward little freak." 

You're stunned. You wish you could make some witty comeback, but you'd never been in a situation like this before. Heather Hills was like somebody who only existed in movies, you'd never imagined encountering someone like her in real life. Before you get a chance to say anything, she struts away, joined by her friends who are all laughing like she made the joke of the century. How could somebody be so blatantly evil? She might as well have had horns poking up out of her bouncy blonde hair. You wanted the ground to swallow you whole.

"That bitch!" yells Evelyn, loud enough for Heather to hear. You swear you can hear her laughing even louder in the distance.

"I know. And I didn't even say anything back!" You look down at the ground, fists clenched and cheeks blazing.

"I didn't do anything to help either, I'm sorry," she puts her hands on your shoulders and looks you in the eyes, "Listen, don't let her get to you, she's like this to everyone. She tries to stop me from scoring all the time during netball, even when we're on the same team." Aha! You knew Evelyn had to be on one of the sports teams! "Honestly, and I'm not just saying this as a friend, I think she feels threatened by you. Just like how I'm better than her at sports, there must be something you have that she doesn't. She wants to crush your confidence, but you can't let her, understood?"

You don't know what to say. You knew Evelyn always told the truth, but what could you have that Heather doesn't? She had everything. However, you could see that Evelyn was right about letting Heather win. You'd never giver her the satisfaction, not after today. 

"This morning started out so nicely..." you say with a sigh.

"And it's going to stay nice! Remember, if you let her ruin your day, she's already won." Evelyn says this so intensely that you can't help but believe her. You nod once in silent agreement.

"Alright! Now let's go and seize the day!" Evelyn links arms with you and you stomp off triumphantly together down the corridor to your first class. So what if Heather thought you were a freak? You could barely believe how nice Evelyn was being to you after only knowing you since Monday - hopefully for every Heather Hills in Plainview there was another Rodrick or Evelyn to balance things out. If that was the case you could really see yourself liking it here. 

After that, the day pretty much passed by as usual. You were given some extra work by your english teacher to help you catch up on what you'd missed, and as you got up too late to fix your own lunch today, you ate at the cafeteria instead. Today's delicacy: stale pizza with an apple for nutritional balance. The time eventually came for Rodrick to take you home, and once again you spent the journey happily chatting to one another. Despite his sarcasm and constant teasing, he made you feel safe, like while you were in that van with him nothing truly bad could ever happen to you. Unlike Evelyn where what you saw was what you got, you couldn't help feeling that there was something deeper to Rodrick than the 'bad boy' he portrayed himself as, and that you could find out what it was if you only got to know him better.

The next day, as expected, Rodrick took you to school again. Part of you was worried that he'd get tired of being your personal taxi soon, and you really didn't want it to end. Every day you felt your friendship with Rodrick strengthen as you found out more and more about each other's lives during your daily conversations. Should the worst come to the worst, at least you knew how to drive. Maybe if you were lucky your parents would help pay for a second hand car for your next birthday. Otherwise you'd have to take the bus. Honestly, the bus wasn't even that bad - it was more the thought that you'd only ever see Rodrick again in English class that bothered you. After all, he was always in detention during break and after school. If only you had some kind of excuse to see him outside of school.

When you pull up at the school parking lot and Rodrick cuts the engine, he leans over to you, his eyes not quite meeting yours. You're so close you can feel his breath on your skin. Without warning, he reaches out to touch your hair. A shiver runs down your spine.

"There's something... in your hair," he says quietly. The soft stroking of your hair turns to sharp tugging, and before you know what's happened Rodrick is showing you the leaf he found tangled up in there. After letting you look at it for about a second, he flicks it out of the window.

"Thanks," you say in a low whisper. You hadn't quite gotten your breath back. Rodrick just smiles. There was something in his eyes that told you he knew what he was doing. You imagined what it would be like to have him running your fingers through your hair on a regular basis, and not just to take out leaves. There was something so delicate and natural about the way his fingers combed through your hair, like nothing could be more right. Well, until he started pulling. You cradle your scalp from the pain. 

After that you go your separate ways and as usual you're greeted by Evelyn at the lockers. 

"Somebody's in a good mood today!" she says, grinning.

"What do you mean?"

"I can see it all over your face, it's pretty obvious." Despite knowing it's a bad idea, you're so elated that you can't keep what happened to yourself and you describe your encounter with Rodrick in detail. She looks pretty unimpressed throughout.

"...I've even invited him to my housewarming party tomorrow. Well, I invited his whole family, but that was because my mom wanted me to." Evelyn's face shifts from slightly annoyed to completely horrified. This was not the reaction you were hoping for, although deep down it was the one you were expecting. You still had no idea what her problem with Rodrick was. 

"What? What are you making that face for?" You're surprised at how aggressive your words come out and quickly unfold your arms to seem less harsh.

"There's something I need to tell you about Rodrick..."


	6. Who to Believe

"There's something I need to tell you about Rodrick..." What was she being so dramatic for? Evelyn continues. "You shouldn't trust him. I can't tell you everything now, but believe me, he's just pretending to like you because... well, I don't know why, but he is." 

You feel the bile rise up in your throat. What made her think she knew Rodrick so well? If you didn't know better you'd assume she was jealous, but her obvious disdain for him suggested otherwise. It just didn't make sense. Did Evelyn really feel this badly about Rodrick? You feel hurt and confused, and just about ready to either burst out crying or erupt into flames.

"Are you ok?" Evelyn asks, interrupting your spiral of emotions. You decide then and there to put on the best acting performance of your life. If you could convince Evelyn you didn't care about Rodrick, maybe you'd start to believe it too.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" you reply, trying to sound as neutral as possible. Evelyn gives you a quizzical look.

"Um, because you act like you're totally in love with him?" You grit your teeth because you know she's right, but you do your best to shrug it off.

"Yeah, well, there's plenty more fish in the sea or whatever." But you knew that there weren't any other guys at school like Rodrick, probably not even in the whole state. Even amongst his friends, who shared the same music and fashion tastes, he stood out. What was it about him? You picture Rodrick in your mind - his tall frame, his dark eyes, his spiky bedhead hair. Before you know it, you're in a world of your own, reliving the events from this morning.

"Hello? Are you there?" Evelyn's words snap you back to reality.

"Huh?"

"I was just saying I'm surprised how well you took it. I'm glad too, he wasn't worth your time." What does she know about who is and isn't worth my time? You're surprised at your ferocity of your thoughts and force yourself to calm down and just be relieved that she bought your act. You can't think of anything to say, so you just nod.

A little while later the bell goes and you walk off to class. You try to concentrate on your lessons but all you can do is think over what Evelyn said. What did she mean you couldn't trust him? Why couldn't she tell you everything now? What even was 'everything'? If Rodrick was pretending to like you, what was he trying to gain? At the time, you were too defensive to believe her, but now you could feel doubt creeping in. Honestly, you really don't know much about Rodrick, but it's not as if you know Evelyn any better. Besides, the playful conversations you'd had with him in his van seemed so genuine. Could that really have been all an act? You couldn't bear to think that it was, but what did Rodrick even see in you? Why would he pick you out of everyone else? More than once a teacher asks you for the solution to a question you can't answer because you aren't paying any attention. A few people giggle but you're too focused on your other problems to care.

Variations of these same thoughts haunt you the whole day. When it's finally time for your English lesson with Rodrick, he plays the usual pranks on you, completely oblivious. He steals your pencil case and throws paper at your head and you try to play along but your heart is just not in it. It doesn't help that you can feel Evelyn's disapproving gaze burning your neck from behind the whole time. You wonder if he notices a change in your demeanor at all but he doesn't seem to. He just keeps on grinning at you like a mischievous little kid. You smile, despite everything that's going on in your head. It's hard to stay mad at someone who doesn't even know they've done something wrong.

English is your last period today, so you and Rodrick leave together to go home. You want to ask him about what Evelyn said, but you can't do it in a way that doesn't make it obvious that you like him. Besides, there was nothing stopping him from lying to you, so what was the point? There was also the party to think about. If you made it awkward now, maybe he wouldn't even come. You flop down into the passenger seat with a heavy sigh.

"You ok?"

"It's been a long week," you say, forcing a smile. Without saying anything, Rodrick puts your favourite album on. You smile again, but this time it's genuine. For a while you forget about all your doubts and just enjoy the moment together, not even saying a word. Before you pull up to your driveway, the track changes to a slower and more romantic song. You tense up, your heart starts beating faster and you can feel your cheeks going cherry red. What's wrong with me? I'm supposed to be over him! You quickly glance over at him to see if he's noticed, and you could almost swear his face was a similar shade! You look away and shake your head, thinking you must have seen wrong. Evelyn's warning plays again in your head. Before the van stops, you're already unbuckling your seatbelt and reaching for the door. As soon as the van comes to a halt, you jump out. 

"See you tomorrow!" you shout over your shoulder as you run to your front door.

"Bye!" he calls back. You think you can hear him laughing faintly. When you get in you slam the door behind you and let out a huge sigh of relief. Good job, very cool. Not suspicious at all.

Just then, your mom walks into the hallway.

"Why are you so sweaty? Did you run home?" she asks, clearly puzzled.

"No, I'm just... really hot." Your mom gives you a weird look and then walks to the kitchen. Maybe that wasn't the best cover story considering it's October.

You go to your room, relieved that it was Friday and you didn't have any work due tomorrow. But instead of enjoying yourself you end up worrying about the housewarming party the whole time. How should you play it? As far as you knew, Rodrick was the only 'kid' your age that was going to be there, so you couldn't ignore him forever. You also remember the time he told you he would 'explain everything' at the party. What was with Rodrick and Evelyn mysteriously withholding information from you? After hours of planning and un-planning your approach at the party, you eventually get to sleep.

The next morning is mostly spent cleaning the house from top to bottom. Your mom insisted that you clean your room too, even though the party was happening in the living room and kitchen downstairs. After lunch, you help with making the party food. They're almost all recipes from this questionable book your dad borrowed from the library called '101 canapés', but you managed to convince your parents earlier to get cake and chips too. After you help decorate the house you're finally allowed some time to yourself to choose your outfit and get ready. As you're putting the finishing touches on your makeup, you can hear people starting to arrive downstairs. You know your parents are expecting you to go and welcome them but you don't rush yourself. You weren't exactly thrilled to have to answer the same three questions over and over from a bunch of adults you didn't even know. Nevertheless, once you're done you go downstairs to perform your duties. The time drags by, but still the Heffleys don't show up. You watch the clock intently as you pretend to be interested in your other neighbours. Almost an hour of torture passes, and you start to wonder if they're even coming. Exactly as the hands on the clock read quarter past eight, the doorbell rings and the Heffley's come shuffling in. You're so relieved to see someone your own age you practically fling yourself at Rodrick, barely acknowledging his other family members. He looks surprised, but not upset.

"Hey"


	7. Champagne

"Hey." You look up at him through your eyelashes. He's dressed a little smarter than usual - no doubt the doing of his mother, Mrs Heffley. She seemed like a nice woman, but it was obvious she was very eager to present a good impression this evening. The dad, on the other hand, had a completely wild look in his eyes. He was kind of scary, to tell the truth.  
Rodrick looked down at you, smiling a little. Although he was wearing a white button up shirt and slacks, his hair was as tousled as usual and his eyes were still black with eyeliner. Even more so than usual, in fact. Your parents start chatting to one another and you finally feel confident enough to strike up a conversation.  
"Your family seems nice."  
"Oh yeah, that's what they'd like you to think, it's all a big act," he says disdainfully.  
"So where's your baby brother?" you ask, trying to change the subject.  
"Oh they hired a babysitter for him." A pause. He looks around. "I think I'm gonna get some of that champagne, you want some?" You nod. Of course, neither of you were 'of age' but it wasn't like you were going to be driving a car anytime soon. Besides, your parents probably wouldn't mind as long as you were under their supervision.  
Rodrick leaves you there, stranded for a few moments before returning with two flutes of bubbly liquid. He hands one to you, the glass slightly wet from condensation.  
"Cheers," he says in a deep, almost scratchy voice. You clink glasses and take a sip simultaneously. It tastes kind of bitter, but not entirely unpleasant. As you both take the glasses away from your lips, you notice that the champagne has left a glassy sheen on Rodrick's lips. He must be able to feel it because he sticks his tongue out to lick them soon after.  
"Mmm, this is the good kind." He puts on a posh accent. "Quite splendid." You giggle.  
"So... can I see what your room looks like?" Butterflies rise up in your stomach. You weren't expecting this. Your mind races, jumping from conclusion to conclusion, Evelyn's words lodged firmly in the back of your mind. Out of curiosity you decide to agree, and you find yourself walking up the stairs to your room, champagne in hand, with Rodrick following closely behind.  
"Here it is," you say opening the door. You were now immensely grateful that your mom had forced you to tidy it earlier today. He walks in, closing the door behind him, and jumps right on the bed.  
"Well, this is my room," you say, stating the obvious. You weren't exactly sure what was supposed to happen next.  
"It's nice, it's nice," he motions to the cardboard boxes, "I like what you've done with the place." You roll your eyes at him.  
"So, what did you wanna see?" You take another sip of champagne.  
"To tell the truth, I just wanted to go somewhere more private." You raise an eyebrow at him.  
"Oh yeah? To do what?"  
"Come over here and I'll tell you."  
"Hold on a minute, first you need to tell me about that weird text thing in the middle of the night."  
"Come here," he says again, and you have no choice but to obey. He brings his hands behind your waist, bringing you closer and he whispers in your ear.  
"I wanted to tell you..."  
"What?" you whisper back urgently.  
"I wanted to tell you how you make me feel. With other girls it's so easy, but with you... I just got so nervous."  
His breath makes your neck tingle. Your heart beat is loud and fast now. He leans forward to kiss your neck and you're so close now that you're sitting on his knee. You give in, your hands moving behind his head as if you'd done this a thousand times.  
"I feel the same way about you, idiot," you whisper between breaths.  
He grips you tighter, and his kisses move down your body. You start to breathe harder as he unzips you from the back. You take a brief break from running your fingers through his hair to unbutton his shirt and toss it aside, your body moving backwards and forwards with each breath. Eventually, your passion pushes you both back onto the bed, still kissing each other wildly. As if entranced, you pull your dress down and kick it off of your ankles, knocking your shoes off in the process, not taking your attention away from him for a second. You lie under him on the bed in your underwear as he wriggles out of his pants and kicks them to the floor. He kneels over you on all fours and you lie there, your chest rising and falling as he leans forward to unhook your bra. It slides to the floor and he lowers himself down, kissing you as you run your arms up and down his bare back, whispering his name. Just as you start to wonder if things will go any further, you hear a knock at the door.


	8. Clearing Things Up

You and Rodrick shoot each other the same panic-stricken look. Gesturing for him to hide in the wardrobe, you scramble to get your clothes back on. The doors shut with a bang behind him as he gets in, making you flinch.

"Who is it?" you call, trying your best to mask your slurred speech. An agonising stretch of silence follows.

"It's me," replies the familiar voice of your mother. "Can I come in?" she asks, already starting to crack the door open. Your stomach flips and you sprint across the room to slam it closed again.

"No, I'm changing!" you shout back desperately.

"Already? It's barely past 9!" The accusation in her voice makes you swallow as you feel your throat drying out from nervousness.

"Yeah, I'm really tired." Rodrick knocks a clothes hanger from the rail to the floor with a loud clatter and you bite your lip, barely daring to breathe.

"What was that?" You can feel the blood drain from your face. Your heart stops.

"I just dropped a coat hanger, mom. What do you need?" Your tactic of changing the subject works seamlessly.

"Mrs Heffley is looking for Rodrick so they can leave. Is he up here?"

"No, he told me he was gonna go get more food... from downstairs." Did that sound convincing?

"Ok, well, let me know if you see him."

"Sure."

You let out a sigh of relief as you hear her retreating down the stairs. When you're completely sure it's safe, you open the doors of the wardrobe to let Rodrick out. You forgot that he was standing in there half-naked and you look away in surprise, forcing his clothes into his arms. 

"You'd better get into your pyjamas so she doesn't know you were lying."

"Oh, right." At least someone was thinking clearly. Slightly embarrassed, you shuffle out of the dress you were so quick to put on. Despite everything that had just happened, or maybe because of it, it's unbearable to change with Rodrick watching. You make him turn around and promise not to look before getting into your pyjamas. In that moment, the weight of what you'd just done, what you could have done, hits you, causing a feeling of bitter sickness to rise inside you. What if you had gone all the way with him? Did he even have any protection on him? Jesus Christ, you've know this guy for less than a week! What if he was just using you? The thoughts race through your mind at a thousand miles per hour as you pull your pyjama pants over your legs. 

While you're still facing the wall, Rodrick comes up and hugs you from behind, taking you by surprise as he wraps his arms around your waist. The sickness you had felt turns to butterflies, and in that moment you melt into him. It feels safe, secure, exciting even. In a matter of seconds however, the sick feeling returns as you remember the reality of the situation and you force yourself to turn around and back away from him. 

"I think we should take things slower. We're both a little drunk and I think maybe you got the wrong idea about me." You hate saying these words, but do your best to sound firm and in control. His facial expression changes from surprise to what looks like hurt and you feel a pang of guilt. 

"Maybe we went a little far, but I meant what I said. Can we still hang out and see what happens?" His maturity about the situation surprises you. You kind of expected him to get mad, especially since you had wanted it just as much as he had. 

"Yeah, I'd like that." Supporting yourself on his shoulders, you lift your heels off the floor to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. Even after everything that had happened, you still felt the same rush of giddiness as you had felt when you first brushed hands.

"OK, now just go downstairs and pretend you were in the upstairs bathroom," you instruct him. "Oh, and one more thing." You do up one of the buttons he had missed on his shirt and fold down the collar. "There, perfect." He smiles somewhat sadly as he leaves your room, closing the door behind him. 

You open your curtains and look out the window and into the night as Rodrick and his family walk off down the road. Part of you hopes that he'd look back and see you, but you weren't sure why. You continue watching until they disappear from sight but he never does.

Sighing, you flop down on your bed. How could you feel so happy and so sad at the same time? It wasn't as if you'd never see him again, it wasn't even as if you could never date. Even so, you couldn't help feeling like maybe you'd lead him on, or that he wouldn't want to see you anymore. Also, something unnerved you about how smooth it had all been. Surely, if he really liked you, he would have been a bit more nervous? It was all so confusing. You know that you need to tell someone, but it definitely couldn't be Evelyn. You can't help but let out a laugh as you think about what her reaction would be. No, it would have to be someone far more removed from the situation. You reach for your phone and open up the old group chat.

"Something crazy just happened!!" 

Almost instantly your phone starts buzzing with messages from your old friends. You smile at their enthusiastic replies, practically begging for more details. However, your joy was again tainted with sadness as you thought about how far away they were. As much as you liked Evelyn, she could never replace the friends you'd known since middle school. After telling them everything, including how you felt, the chat was going crazy with conflicting advice. Some of your friends thought he was totally using you and you should cut him off altogether, while others thought that it was the most romantic thing they had ever heard. Despite their good intentions, it didn't leave you any less confused that you had been before.

Eventually you put your phone down and decide to go and check if the party was over. You can't hear any music, so you tiptoe downstairs. The living room is like a bomb site, with the remains of the party scattered everywhere and your mom and dad are in there with trash bags, still in their party clothes (minus the shoes). They're barely making a dent in the paper plate and streamer shrapnel so you decide to help out.

By the time you get into bed it's around eleven. You think about everything that's happened today with a kind of detached neutrality, too tired to start overthinking again. Eventually you drift off to sleep and dream beautiful strange dreams that disintegrate into nothingness as soon as you wake up and reach out for them.


	9. Taking Things Slow

Sunday passes by like a daydream. You float through it, busying yourself with meaningless tasks, too wrapped up in your own thoughts to notice the world around you. When Monday rolls around, you don't care that you have unfinished homework due. You're too busy trying to decide if you should let Rodrick drive you to school or not. On one hand, it was obviously the best way of getting there, but on the other hand, you two definitely needed some space after Saturday, and you felt bad making him go out of his way for you after what had happened. But if he wouldn't drive you, who would? Luckily, Rodrick makes the decision for you. You receive a text saying that he's going to be late to school today, so you might as well go in without him. You let out a deep sigh, allowing the tension to escape your body. Although you suspected this was code for "I don't want to see you", you decide to take him at face value for your own mental well being. Despite the cold weather, you set out early to take the thirty minute walk to school. It isn't a particularly pleasant route, most of it being by the roadside, but the exercise is refreshing. 

When you get there, you find Evelyn putting her hat and scarf away inside her locker. 

"Where's the chauffeur?" She looks around you, presumably for Rodrick.

"Oh, he said he was coming in late today," you respond, shrugging.

"How was the house warming?" she asks, good-naturedly. You struggle in vain to control the blood rushing to your face and resort to pretending to be looking at something down the hall. 

"Super boring, you're lucky you didn't have to come." Forcing yourself to look back at her, you roll your eyes to seem more convincing. 

"So Rodrick didn't come?" There's an edge to her voice that suggests that saying he did would be the wrong answer. You try to find a middle ground between totally lying to Evelyn and telling her the whole embarassing truth.

"Oh yeah, he came, but he just sulked in the corner the whole time. I don't think he wanted to be there." Evelyn seems satisfied with this and shakes her head in mock disappointment. 

"Typical. He thinks he's way too good for everyone."

"Yeah..." If only she knew what had really gone on that night. Maybe she'd be proud of you for telling him you wanted to take things slow. But then again, maybe not. You try to tell yourself she's just trying to look out for you, but you kind of feel like you're being policed.

The bell rings and as you both go off to class Evelyn calls to you,

"Don't forget band practice after school!" Damn. You had totally forgotten about that.

"I won't!" you call back.

You end up getting a detention for the homework you didn't do, but you don't really mind. Detention meant missing ten minutes of band, and potentially seeing Rodrick. You were surprised not to see him in English this morning. When he said he was going to be late, you thought he meant like twenty minutes, not two hours. 

At lunch, Evelyn introduces you to her fellow bandmates, Henna and Lauren. Henna is tall - even taller than Evelyn. She's wearing a black sprigged tea dress with ripped tights and platform boots. When she sees you she says 'hey', keeping her arms folded on the table and not giving anything away. Lauren on the other hand is totally welcoming. She's slightly on the shorter side and is wearing belted corduroy pants with a turtleneck and flannel shirt. It's kind of surprising to you how such different people could be friends. At first, you just sit there shyly, listening as they make inside their jokes and talk about stuff you don't understand. You pass most of the time watching Rodrick eating with his friends from across the hall, occasionally missing your mouth with your food. Before lunch ends however, you've opened up a little . Lauren asks you about how you like it here and if you're settling in well. She even says that she 'can't wait' to see you at band after school. Henna nods in agreement, but her blank, slightly annoyed stare fails to convince you. In fact, the only time she seems to smile is when Lauren says something stupid. When that happens, it sets lauren off too, laughing at the ridiculousness of what she's just said. Almost every time they end up bent over in fits of giggles and looking at each other as if there's nobody in the world but them. During one of these episodes of hysterics you ask Evelyn in a whisper if they're going out. She shakes her head but explains that almost everyone except them knows they've got a crush on each other.

"So they've never said anything to each other?" you ask.

"No, I guess they're too afraid of losing each other as friends." Nodding in understanding, you watch as they laugh so hard they have to support themselves by holding each other's shoulders.

"It's a shame, they'd make a great couple."

When you get to detention at the end of the day, Rodrick isn't there. You feel your heart sink and then immediately reprimand yourself. Why should you even care? You rejected him! When your ten minutes is over, you get up to leave and accidentally bump into someone at the door. You look up to see Rodrick, looking even better now that he was out of your reach. 

"Late even for your late detention, huh?" you ask, hiding your surprise with a snarky comment. He just shrugs and goes to sit down. "Oh!" you stop yourself just before you walk off down the hallway. He turns around to face you. "I just remembered, I'm staying after school for band practice, so don't wait up for me."

"Sure," he responds, apparently indifferent. Why was he acting so coldly towards you? You shake your head as if to wipe the thoughts of Rodrick from your brain like an etch-a-sketch.

When you get to the practice room, Evelyn, Lauren and Henna have already started rehearsing their song without you. For a few moments you just stand outside the room so as to listen without throwing them off. Obviously you can't tell who's playing what, but you think you can recognise Henna as the lead vocalist, singing surprisingly sweetly. It's pretty rough around the edges, but there's definitely some complexity to it. At the next natural break in the song, you open the door as if you just got there and as predicted, they immediately stop playing.

"Hey!"


End file.
